Event Sites- What Sets YOU Apart?

     Computing has really advanced from the 90's dial-up nightmare. Nowadays, there are millions of websites. Literally- there are 644 million active websites according to BusinessInsider in 2012! Okay okay, so you get the picture, feel overwhelmed and have no idea  how to stand out in the mess. Here are what some of the best Event Websites out there put into play.

1. Excellent Imagery

     A great image is probably the first thing that should be featured on your site. Something eye-catching. Something people will remember. This law school's Casino Night Website certainly fits the bill. They know their audience and chose the image perfectly.

2. A Great Call to Action

 

 So you have all the information you need for the event. Now what? Tell the people straight up what you want them to do! Buy Tickets Now, Reserve Seating Today, Choose Your Role (as per above). The possibilities really are endless. It may sound obvious- people looked up your site and are obviously interested in the event, but this call to action can be the difference between the audience quenching their thirst for information and actually attending your event.

3. An Engaging Message

This, alongside the reason behind your event can be the drivers that inspire, encourage and stick with your audience. On the HopeLine website, they feature their message as a short, catchy and seemingly innocent statement- the impact however, is enormous.

4. Concise Description

What is it? A question people don't want to look up the answer to. You can have the greatest mission, the best event, the funnest party and if people are scratching their heads at their monitors they won't look for what it is you're trying to get out. Instead, they will go back to that one YouTube video they heard about last week, and you don't want that. So give the people what they want- a description of your event without the list of all keynote speakers and after-party refreshments.

5. A Way to Engage the Audience

 

So you have all of the above elements. People still visit your site once and go on their merry way. What to do? Create something to make them want to come back! The OSCARS had a great way of doing this with their My Picks game. You wanted to guess, you wanted to tell your friends and engage them, and most of all, you wanted to go back to the site to check the results. 

Now that you know what set these excellent sites apart, you can go about making your own event sites all that they can be. Even if you don't remember half of these ideas, or you have an even better way of engaging your audience and bringing them in, remember that every successful site, event or not, has two key elements; Simplicity and Organization.

What are your thoughts? Anything I left out? Does anything resonate with you? Let me know in the comments below!

By: Dorothy Reczek 350079